


from the day we met

by papercut_fingers



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Summer Camp, Fluff and Angst, How Do I Tag, I'm very soft for Italian nico, M/M, Multi, Nico di Angelo Speaks Italian, Nico di Angelo is Bad at Feelings, but it's not camp halfblood, for the aesthetic, if you got my avatar reference I love you, intentional lowercase, no beta we die like men, nobody talk to me about dead jason, piper and jason are still going strong in this one, the fic needed some fxf okay, there is no dead jason in ba sing se, they go to a summer camp, yes I threw in some theyna, you just know I had to include it, you know
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-30
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:34:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,943
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28430970
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/papercut_fingers/pseuds/papercut_fingers
Summary: nico di angelo is an angsty little emo boy who says no to feelings, will is a big ball of sunshine that can't understand why they don't get alongthis is a summer camp au where all the fam go, no camp half blood/canon demigod stuff tho it's a mortal aui will still call the camp camp half blood tho cause i suck at names
Relationships: Hazel Levesque/Frank Zhang, Jason Grace/Piper McLean, Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, Percy Jackson/Annabeth Chase, Thalia Grace/Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano
Comments: 15
Kudos: 17





	1. chapter one

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> will meets a strange boy on the train who seems set on not talking to him. his friends welcome him back to the chaotic scene that is his life at camp half blood.
> 
> note: this chapter is in will's pov, the next one will be nico's!

the distant rattle of the train tracks barely reached will's ears through the sound of his music. the soft notes humming through his ear buds were the only thing keeping him awake, that and the occasional bump on the tracks.

the train ride thus far had been uneventful. usually will would stare in wonder at the views they passed, but at this point it was nothing new. this would be the third year he'd taken the journey into the countryside of florida, to the annual summer camp he'd come to adore.

the camp itself wasn't so bad, the activities were fun and the weather was nice, if sweltering hot at times. but the real reason will loved camp so much was because of the people he knew there. the first time he'd went he'd been so scared, just a lost fourteen year old who'd been persuaded to go by his mother. it was that summer that he'd met all his loving friends, even if they're a bit chaotic at times. okay, all the time.

speaking of friends, he pulled out his phone to message them, switching playlists as he'd grown tired of the same songs replaying. he felt the train shudder to a stop, the doors clicking open for new passengers. tapping absentmindedly on the group chat he sent,

_who's already there?_

a reply pinged through almost immediately, will's sky blue eyes glanced over the words as he frowned. 

percy: _pretty_ _much all of us dude_

thalia: _yeah,_ _what's taking so long?_

of course those two were the first to reply. they seemed to always be on their phone the way they replied immediately to any message sent. that, or the others just weren't as bothered to pick up their phone every time a notification went off. which was more than likely.

will heard someone take a seat beside him, and the train moved off again. he was surprised anyone had gotten on to be honest. nobody except camp members got this train at this time of year, and this was the first year will hadn't been alone. he glanced curiously sideways at the unknown figure, dressed in all black despite the heat.

he swore he felt his heart stop as his eyes met narrowed brown ones, covered by a soft black fringe. flinching away from the other boy's stare, he looked hurriedly back to his phone. percy and thalia were probably wondering what was taking him so long to reply.

_it's not my fault the train is slow_

he rolled his eyes at the sad faces they sent in reply, and typed out another message.

_some other guy just sat beside me, he must be a new camp member_

this got the others' attention, leo and hazel came online. 

leo: _oooo is he our age_

hazel: _you should ask him if he's going to camp will_

will snuck another glance at the darkly dressed figure beside him, smiling a little at their polar opposite clothing choice. the guy has his head leant back on the window, his neck ghostly pale. he wasn't from florida that was for sure, or maybe he was just a shut in.

_nah, he looks like he'd kill me if I spoke to him_

he ran his eyes over the text, before putting his phone away again. the heat wasn't helping his reading skills and the train was making him feel nauseous. his friends would probably guess as much and not pester him for a reply.

his attention turned involuntarily to the raven head beside him, soft blue irises flicking over his appearance. at least the boy's black jeans were ripped, maybe that would provide some sort of cool against the scorching sun. he was surprised to see the other's eyes closed, though a sense of relief washed over him that he wouldn't have to stare into those big brown eyes again.

as will leaned back in his own seat, humming along softly to the music playing, he jolted as a sudden weight fell upon his shoulder. looking slowly sideways, he discovered the weight was the boy beside him. his heart drummed madly in his chest, he felt his face heat up. as if it wasn't already warm enough, this guy just had to add his body heat into the mix. no wonder he was this warm, wearing all that black.

cautiously, will made to move over slightly to see if he could escape the boy's grasp. but no luck, he felt way too bad to shove him off and result in waking him up. so that's how will ended up with a stranger snuggling into him the whole train ride to camp. the journey certainly wasn't uneventful anymore.

two hours later, the piercing whistle of the train and a shuddering stop awoke will and his new companion. the latter jumping away from will like he'd seen a ghost. will blinked the sleep out of his eyes, scrambling to grab his belongings as he took in his surroundings. the boy beside him seemed to have composed himself, and was now set on glaring at will like he expected answers.

“what the fuck?”

will looked to the sound of the unfamiliar voice, taken aback by the strong accent. he couldn't tell what it was, maybe spanish? he realised the peculiar boy was talking to him, and glaring at him. 

“oh, um, sorry? you kinda, ah, fell asleep on me. I didn't wanna wake you.” he replied sheepishly, shrugging a little as he shrank under the other's stare.

the boy seemed to deem this answer acceptable, he frowned as he took one last fleeting glance at will before turning on his heel and jumping off the train. will followed suit quickly, realising the train was about to move off again. 

taking in a deep inhale of the fresh summer air, will closed his eyes and let the warm breeze flow through his blond hair. probably messing it up further than it already was, but he was past the point of caring.

as he opened his eyes, he realised the boy was staring at him. for what, he couldn't fathom. in an attempt to make small talk, will slipped easily into his usual friendly manner. 

“why's it so hottttt.” he groaned, fake pouting.

“aren't you warm in all that black?” he questioned upon receiving no answer, a little nervously. a short laugh followed his statement but it quickly stopped upon seeing the other boy's frown.

“not really. I don't get hot very easily.” came the curt reply. the accent once again throwing will off. it was almost, beautiful? he stopped his thoughts there, deciding it was a little creepy to think of a stranger like that.

clearing his throat, will nodded slowly. he turned towards the sloping hill beside them, the camp's gates visible at the top. it wasn't a particularly long walk, but in this weather it was enough to make a grown man cry. 

“damn. I wish they'd built the camp on flat ground.” he joked, starting to make his way up the hill. he heard the boy following him, but there was still no reply. maybe he didn't talk much? will was fine with that, he had plenty of introvert friends.

a thought hit him suddenly as he thought of friends, and what his had been asking him to do earlier. maybe it wouldn't hurt to ask the scary boy a question. 

“so uh, I'm assuming you're going to camp half blood too? I'm will solace, it's nice to meet you! what's your name?”

a couple beats silence passed. okay, maybe too many questions. will glanced back to the boy as they reached the gates, eagerly awaiting his response. will's stare seemed to catch the boy off guard, his eyes widened slightly and he stopped walking. 

“nico.” he replied at a soft mumble, immediately avoiding eye contact with the smiling boy in front of him.

will nodded in what he hoped was an encouraging way. holding open the gate for him, he stood back and smiled brightly at this 'nico'. 

“awesome! I can show you around if you want? my friends are waiting for me at the dining area, you can come?” he questioned eagerly, though nico's uncomfortable shifting made him regret being so forward. perhaps introducing him to friends was a bit too nerve wracking.

“o-or not, I don't mind.” he added hastily.

was that gratitude that flashed across nico's face? relief? will couldn't tell before it was gone. 

“yeah, whatever. see you around will.” he muttered in reply before rushing past him and disappearing into the block of cabins.

will sighed and closed the gate. he didn't understand why nico was so unfriendly. was he scaring him off? his confusion was quickly discarded as a familiar ball of energy jumped on top of him in a bear hug. 

he laughed and shoved kayla off, his fellow apollo cabin mate. she was almost like a sister to him and he'd forgotten how much he missed having her around.

“kayla, hey! I hope you haven't messed up our cabin on me yet.” he teased, grinning at her.

kayla pretended to hum in thought before replying with a laugh, “course not! I don't want to get washing up duty on the first week, stupid.”

will nodded along to her insistent chatter at they walked to the dining area, or in kayla's case skipped. she ended up running off to join austin, will's other cabin mate as they entered the center of camp. probably to go and bicker with each other over who got what bunk bed.

he caught sight of his group of friends seated on and around a table at the far end, and went to join them. a chorus of various people shouting his name rang out, one of which accompanied by a very solid back clap from thalia. reyna was sitting in the middle, seemingly the only calm one, she gave will a polite wave. he chuckled knowingly, reyna had more than likely been dragged into this chaotic friend circle once again by thalia.

“hey guys.” he greeted amiably, preparing for the onslaught of questions he knew were coming.

“soooo.... spill! who's the guy? where is he?” piper started, leaning across the table eagerly, much to leo's annoyance as she squished him and beat him to the question.

“ummm, well his name is nico. he didn't want to come with me to meet you guys.” will replied, shrugging.

piper frowned in disappointment at this, seemingly only realising now that will had walked over alone. annabeth laughed and patted piper's arm in mock reassurance. 

“don't worry pipes, you'll get your chance to play cupid.”

“sorry, what? cupid?” will spluttered, a small smile making it's way onto his face despite himself as everyone laughed. their laughter was always so contagious, it was one of will's favourite things about hanging out with them.

“man, I missed you guys.” percy said through laughter, wiping a tear from his eye.

the group broke back into easy conversation, hazel and frank very focused on small bead bracelets they were making. piper and leo were bickering over something whilst jason laughed at them and perfected his handshake with percy. will zoned out as their chatter faded to background noise, admittedly his mind was still on the mystery that was nico.

will wondered if nico was always so quiet, or whether it was just him. will wondered a lot about the boy, actually. but then again, they'd only just met today. and he knew from experience that friendship like this took a while to form. he just hoped nico would give him a chance to get to know him, even if it wasn't right from the day they met.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you sm for reading to the end! kudos and feedback are greatly appreciated, this is my first fic so apologies for any mistakes :) 
> 
> also! this was inspired by the lovely artwork drawn by @llamangos of nico and will on a train, but unfortunately my dumb ass can't figure out how to upload the picture so,, sorry lmao
> 
> \- kaden


	2. chapter two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> will and nico are paired together to lead younger campers strawberry picking :)
> 
> nico's pov this chapter! im gonna alternate between them, so will's next.

campers of all ages gathered around the dining pavilion, curious whispers drifting through the crowd. the weather seemed to have woken up today and chosen violence. it had been 89°F going strong from the early hours of the morning, and there was no hope of it cooling down soon.

nico was, to put it simply, not impressed. he hadn't wanted to go to some namby pamby summer camp anyway, and he definitely had not signed up for melting under the sun all day. in fact, had he had his way, he would've been indoors all day. he found himself thinking about the over-enthusiastic boy he'd met yesterday, probably off somewhere frolicking under the sun. he seemed like the type of person to appreciate warm weather.

nico still felt kinda bad for totally ignoring the boy, it had been weighing on his conscience all night. not that he did much sleeping anyways. if he hadn't been so socially inept maybe he could've made a friend. but a voice in the back of his mind reminded him that will probably wouldn't like him anyway, it was better to leave people alone and not annoy them.

first of all, nico was not at all okay with the fact he had slept on a stranger's shoulder. that alone was enough to make him want to completely disappear from the guy's life out of sheer embarrassment.

second of all, he was struggling to come to terms with the way those shining blue eyes made his stomach feel. and really just everything about the blond in general. how could one person be so happy? it blew nico's mind.

third of all, he was sort-of-kind-of-maybe scared of making friends. and this guy seemed like the total opposite. he was not about to get roped into some awkward situation on his first day. or ever, in fact. 

a shrill whistle rang out from the front of the crowd, making nico and multiple others jump and cover their ears.

“alright, listen up campers!” a firm voice called out over the megaphone in his hand.

“oh, oh! is that chiron?” a small girl beside nico asked what he assumed was her older sibling.

noted, nico thought. this chiron guy seemed alright. he didn't look like your typical preppy camp leader as nico had been envisioning. 

“today we'll be doing some strawberry picking, in the fields over there!” chiron pointed as he spoke, pausing to make sure everyone got it. “we'll be making deserts out of them later, so try not to eat too many!”

a couple of kids laughed at this, nico frowned in confusion. how was that funny? as he fell into his thoughts, he missed a couple sentences and just about gave up on understanding. the ten year old beside him was taking in a whole lot more than he was. understanding large amounts of english could be difficult at times, what with him being originally italian.

“nico di angelo and–”

the sound of his name made nico snap his head up, heart pounding in his chest as he frantically tried to listen to see what was going on. 

“will solace! you two will be leading group b!”

nico had to resist the urge to grown out loud. of all people it just _had_ to be the one he'd already made a fool out of himself to. now he'd have no choice but to make conversation he'd been oh so desperately avoiding. he didn't think he could bare being around the sunshine boy any longer, he might just throw up all the butterflies in his stomach.

a girl with short black hair bumped into him as the crowd began to disperse, he caught a flash of electric blue eyes as they both stumbled backwards. 

“ahh, sorry sorry!” the girl muttered.

nico stared at her for a second and watched as her expression switched to concern. 

“er, are you okay? you don't look so well.”

nico gave an internal dry laugh, of course he didn't. when did he ever. clearly his nerves had shown on his face. he mustered a reply, a deep frown on his face as he avoided eye contact,

“I'm fine.”

another girl with long dark brown hair tied back into a plait approached them, putting a hand on the shorter girl's shoulder. they greeted eachother and broke onto conversation, giving nico a chance to escape and blend into the crowd. not that the feat was difficult, nico had a knack for blending into the shadows.

he quickly realised that the two girls must've been paired up as well, and that soon will would be coming to find him as the other girl had. shit shit _shit._ turning away from the crowd, where smaller campers were starting to line up, nico stepped back and glanced around furtively. where was he?

“there you are! hey, nico right?” a cheery voice to his left reached his ears.

suppressing a sigh, nico turned to him in defeat and mumbled, “hey, will.”

he tried not to look up, knowing that awfully bright grin would be staring into his soul. however, he was surprised as he was met with laughter instead. he was laughing? why?

forcing his gaze up, he stared with evident confusion on his face at will smiling largely and suppressing chuckles.

trying and failing to speak without laughing, will supplied, “why'd- why'd you, uh, say it like that? sorry, it was funny.” he finished with an apologetic grin.

nico's brow furrowed further, he glanced sideways to avoid those sparkling blue eyes. “like what? will?”

will started laughing again, though upon seeing nico's glare he stifled them. wiping a tear from his eye, he replied, “yeah, yeah. you say it like, 'wheel'. it's fine, it's cute.”

nico counted the seconds where there was tense silence as will realised what he'd said. one. two. three. four. five. six.

the boy's face flushed a soft red, he added quickly, “ah, I mean, nothing. nevermind.”

nico glared at him and shot back, “yeah, well I don't appreciate you laughing about it. I can't help it you know.”

he realised how angry his words had sounded as soon as they left his mouth, but oh well. too late now. his mind was still reeling over the fact that this positively adorable boy had called _him_ cute. it wasn't his fault his defence mechanism had kicked in. a pool of regret gathered in his stomach as will's smiling face fell, he looked regretful too.

“oh, sorry. I didn't mean to offend you.” he mumbled hesitantly, watching nico with a wary eye. apparently his glare was a lot scarier than he'd meant it to be. 

nico stood with his feet planted to the ground in horror, as will turned to address their line of kids that had gathered under the letter plate b. oh god he'd really messed it up this time. but seriously, who thought it was okay to laugh at someone's accent? alright, maybe will had no way of knowing he was insecure but still.

at the very least he was glad will _seemed_ to have moved past it. he was directing the kids in his usual cheery manner. will turned and gestured to nico, he stumbled forward and faced the onslaught of curious and frightened looks.

“introduce yourself.” will prompted quietly, shoving nico gently in the arm. he recoiled from the sudden touch, stepping backwards and taking a moment to understand what will had said.

he cleared his throat and tried not to look too sullenly at the kids. “um, hi, I'm nico.”

cringing at the silence that followed, he looked to will for guidance and thankfully he seemed to think nothing of it. with that _ugh_ bright smile, he started talking loudly to the kids and led them, and nico, over to the strawberry fields.

five groups in total, letters a through e, were scattered across the vast landscape of green, the sun beating down relentlessly on them. nico was hating every second of it. so far, he'd yet to speak to will again. but he'd watched the boy have multiple interactions with small, excited children showing him their gradually filling baskets. nico had to admit, the sight warmed his heart. yet another perfectly in-character thing about him, he was great with kids.

will's voice was growing familiar, and it got nico's attention immediately as a softly pronounced version of his name left his lips. he turned to look up at will through his long, dark fringe like, 'what?'

“er, just um wondering if you're enjoying camp so far!” the blond stuttered, visibly faltering under nico's stare.

nico didn't have the heart to tell him what he really thought. _hell no! it fucking sucks! it's too warm and too crowded and I've made myself look like an idiot more than once already!_

“yeah, it's alright.” he shrugged, turning away again and rubbing his arms.

he'd had no choice but to ditch his ever-comforting aviator jacket due to the heat, and was left feeling uncomfortably exposed in just his black skull tee. his legs were boiling under his black jeans but he didn't care, no amount of persuasion would get him to wear shorts. will however, looked perfectly in his element. adorned in a light blue tee that perfectly complimented his eyes, and light cargo shorts to match.

will hummed in reply, seeming to have nothing to say. _he probably hates me right now._ nico thought sullenly. _I've done nothing but ignore him and tell him off._

a young camper with light blond hair bounced up to nico, proudly holding out their basket full of strawberries. why they hadn't ran to will, nico couldn't fathom. he offered them a small smile and nodded in what he hoped was encouragement.

“uhm, great job. you can leave that here and go help your friends find some, kay?” he said to the boy carefully, repeating over and over in his head, _don't be scary don't be scary._

the boy grinned and nodded, setting his basket at nico's feet and running off again. nico let out a relieved exhale, nervously twisting a strand of hair around his finger.

a soft chuckle came from beside him, he looked to see will smiling. “why you didn't say you were good with kids? I would've let you talk to them more.”

nico frowned and replied quickly, “I-I'm not. I always scare them off anyway.” he didn't wait for will to reply, walking off to a group of kids who were arguing loudly under the pretense of having to sort it out.

 _great job, nico. fan-fucking-tastic. you respond to his compliment with that?_ he scolded himself, ears burning in embarrassment and annoyance. why, for the love of god, could he not hold one pleasant conversation with the guy?

after that will seemed to have given up talking to nico, they didn't say a word to each other for the rest of the afternoon. nico decided it was probably for the best anyways, will only would've left him sooner or later. and besides, will seemed pretty fed up with him continuously snapping at him. he had every right to be upset.

after what seemed like forever, nico was relieved of his child-watching duties and quickly made his escape. he was, to put it lightly, bitter about being forced to camp at all. his dad had insisted and insisted until nico couldn't bare his whining any longer, but he figured his dad didn't need to know if he spent all summer inside the cabin, right? 

exhaling in relief as the shade of the dimly lit cabin covered him, he flopped down onto his bed and lay an arm over his face. the only reason he was so comfortable in the cabin was because it was vacant apart from him, some girl with curly blonde hair and startling grey eyes had explained to him it was because it was new. though when he'd looked at her in confusion, she'd sheepishly admitted it was also because other campers believed it to be haunted. 

nico didn't care, haunted or not the cabin was the perfect escape. right now all he wanted was to cool down in peace, and maybe mull grumpily over will-centered thoughts. the guy had totally called him cute today, like outright said it. nico didn't know what to make of that, it was certainly a first. from their previous interaction he would've thought something more along the lines of 'creepy' would've fitted better.

he didn't care to venture from the comforts of his cabin until the dinner bell shocked him back to reality. he hadn't really had lunch, bar a few strawberries, so he supposed he should try eat something. pulling on a long black hoodie to protect him from the cool evening air, he trudged over to the dining pavilion where thankfully nobody seemed to notice him emerging from the shadows. keeping his eyes glued to the table, he prayed that stupid ray of sunshine wouldn't pop up any second. the guy seemed to have a knack for finding him, no matter how much he blended in.

 _survived day two, just about,_ he thought miserably to himself, contemplating whether food was worth getting up for. _only like, seven more weeks to go._ he groaned, resting his head in his hand. this was gonna be one long summer. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading until the end! comments & kudos are appreciated <3
> 
> \- kaden


	3. chapter three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> will's pov! the group finally get to meet nico, and play an interesting game of truth or dare :)

will loved the dining area, it felt so similar to home, the deliciously sweet aroma of all the hot food freshly served, and the friendly chatter of campers exchanging stories about their day. if he didn't see much of his friends throughout the day, he was sure to find them there. he took a seat at the already overcrowded table, warily eyeing percy chugging a syrup container.

“hey, everyone. anything interesting happen today?” he greeted cheerfully, laughing as annabeth snatched the syrup from percy's hand.

across the table from him, thalia looked up from her heavily ketchup-ed fries and shrugged. “not much. chased a kid with a water gun, oh! and I quite literally ran into some tired looking dude wearing all black.”

will faltered, choking on the orange juice he'd started to sip and looking up through teary eyes as frank patted him on the back. “sorry- what? did he, uh, did he have long black hair and big brown eyes?”

the rest of the group turned their attention to will, curious gazes filling his periphery vision. thalia mumbled back through a mouthful of fries, “oddly specific, but yeah. you know him?”

will nodded, smiling excitedly and making various hand gestures as he spoke. “yeah yeah, he's the dude I was telling you guys about yesterday! the scary guy on the train. we got paired together for strawberry picking today.”

piper sat up straight at this, raising an eyebrow and staring at will with scrutiny. “oh? you're talking about him a lot. something you're not telling us?”

curse that god forsaken girl and her intense romance sensing radar. will felt his face heating up, desperately hoping the dim light and his freckles would disguise it. he rubbed the back of his neck and laughed nervously.

“er, no, not really. he is pretty cute, but trust me he's not interested. he doesn't really want to talk to me, actually.” he pouted as he finished, realising how sad it sounded out loud.

annabeth gave him a reassuring look and said with a shrug, “I'm sure he'll come around. I had the honour of showing him to his cabin, I got that kind of vibe from him too. maybe he's just shy.”

will smiled a little, knowing she was probably right. annabeth had a way of forcing you to feel better by slapping you with the reasons why you should. thalia, however, didn't seem satisfied with this conclusion. raising her hand, she waggled her pointy finger at will.

“oi, william. don't be a pussy little bitch, bring him over here! where is he? I wanna say sorry again for totally knocking him over earlier.”

reyna shot her a disapproving glance, which was quickly stifled as thalia shoved fries in her face. percy and piper nodded in agreement, starting up a chant of, 

“nico, nico, nico!”

will hurriedly shushed them, standing up and glancing around the dining pavilion nervously. “shut up guys! he'll hear you! I'm going, I'm going..”

searching the crowd desperately, he jolted as blue eyes met brown ones. he'd recognise those eyes anywhere, the way they sent involuntary shivers down his spine. marching determinedly towards the gaze that immediately flicked down upon eye contact, he stopped in front of an empty table bar one certain italian. 

“hey, nico! uh, sorry to bother you.. my friends want you to come over.” he hummed sheepishly, averting his gaze and rubbing his arm.

the dark haired boy's face was covered by his long fringe as he stared stubbornly at the table, but after a moment a small muffled, “sure.”could be heard from amidst the hoodie. will smiled encouragingly, waiting for nico to stand before leading the way, weaving in and out of the crowd.

the second they reached the table piper was there, hand outstretched and a politely sweet composure gathered. “heya, nico right? I'm piper!”

will watched nico carefully for his reaction, curious to see if it was just him the boy disliked. but to nobody's surprise, nico shook her hand like it was made of hot coals and kept his eyes to the side the whole time. as will took a seat, and nico was positively thrown into one by piper, he froze as he heard a small voice ask, 

“uhm, how did you know my name?”

he shot piper a look, warning her not to mention anything, she mimed zipping her mouth shut and gave him a thumbs up. though apparently she wasn't the only one he had to worry about, a smugly cool voice chimed in, 

“oh, will's told us all about you! it's nice to meet you, "pretty cute" boy.” percy smiled in a friendly nature at nico, who seemed positively mortified.

“he did?” nico replied calmly, seemingly ignoring the pretty cute part, and shooting will a glare.

will stuttered, thankfully saved by thalia jumping in to the conversation.

“so, you're nico? I'm really sorry for bumping into you earlier! you disappeared before I had the chance to say much.” she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she spoke, dyed in a wild streak of blue.

beside her, reyna spoke up politely, giving nico a small smile. “I didn't get the chance to introduce myself then either. it's lovely to meet you nico, I'm reyna and this idiot is thalia.”

thalia slapped her arm at this, sticking out her tongue. “don't listen to her nico, I'm extremely intelligent.”

nico seemed to not know what to make of this, clearly he wasn't as accustomed to this sort of banter as the rest of them. will had to stifle a smile.

“oh, it's nice to meet you both.” he replied quietly, flinching as leo reached across piper to poke him in the shoulder.

“I'm leo! want a taco? I helped make them so just know that I will be offended if you don't like it.”

at nico's worried expression as he shyly took the taco being waved in his face, piper shot leo a glare and turned to the boy beside her. “oh don't be silly, he's only joking really nico.” she said reassuringly, smiling at him.

will picked up a taco, complementing leo on it and laughing at the boy's boasting. aside from percy and jason knocking over a glass of juice whilst arguing over whether mcdonalds or burger king was better, dinner went fairly smoothly. though will had to admit, by the end of the evening he was just about sick of piper's continuous suggestive glances his way. maybe his subtle glances to nico hadn't been as subtle as he'd thought.

the blond was pleasantly surprised to see nico come out of his shell as the evening went on, even striking up a friendly conversation with jason, whom he seemed to like. will could see why, jason, and maybe reyna, were the only calm and introvert-friendly ones of the group. by 7:00pm most of the other campers had already cleared off, heading back to their cabins for the night, but their little group stayed much longer. 

at around 8:00, the sun started to set in beautiful colours behind them and the temperature finally dropped. annabeth started suggesting they go to bed, only convinced eventually by percy to stay a little longer. though it seemed she wasn't the only one getting bored, piper stood up and clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. will groaned quietly, noticing the malicious glint in her eyes. he could feel nico's gaze on him, no doubt wondering why he was groaning before she'd even spoken.

“guys, guys! listen up! we, are going to play... truth or dare!” she exclaimed with a grin, taking a swig of coca cola as she sat down again.

at this, a couple others groaned as well, bar thalia and percy who cheered with matched energy. hazel seemed to be the only one not reacting, she paused her conversation with frank and asked softly with a frown, “uhm, what's that?”

there were various shouts of outrage at her words, however will wasn't surprised. hazel had been raised by her grandmother, and wasn't always up to date on modern day games and such. what did surprise him, was nico nodding in agreement and adding, 

“yeah, what's this true or day?” he pronounced the two words with difficulty, seeming to try and recall exactly how piper had said it.

jason turned to nico and corrected kindly, “truth or dare. is english not your first language?”

will chuckled under his breath at the visible blush across the ravenette's face. nico nodded slightly, kicking will in the shins under the table. “yeah, I'm italian. sorry.”

whilst will spluttered in pain and pouted over his bruised shin, jason and percy asked in unison, “why are you apologising?” which resulted in an explosion of laughter between the two of them. will mentally noted that about nico, he was apologetic. it made will a little sad, to see how insecure the boy was. no wonder he'd been so defensive and nervous today and the day before.

once everyone settled again, percy dibbed going first only to give the opportunity to annabeth. will smiled at the two, they were seriously adorable sometimes. annabeth sat deep in thought for a while, long enough for thalia to flick more than a couple chips at her, before finally saying,

“piper, truth or dare?” from the blonde's smile, she clearly had a good option for both. piper narrowed her eyes suspiciously and replied with confidence, “dare.”

“okay, I dare you to dye your hair pink. oh and not permanently.” trust annabeth to be so reasonably civil, will thought with a smile. 

piper mimed throwing up and laughed, protesting, “no way! pink is not my colour.”

annabeth pouted and pointed out, “everything is your colour. and besides, it's a dare you have to do it.”

after a couple minutes of bickering, piper eventually agreed to do it later and they settled down. “alright! my turn!” piper exclaimed, immediately looking to will eagerly. will sank down into his seat, sighing in resignation.

“william! my man, my dude! truth or dare~?”

he looked up at her with an unimpressed expression, biting his lip and replying uncertainly, “dare?”

she grinned, folding her arms and leaning back smugly in her seat. “I dare youu.. to give nico a kiss on the cheek.”

will saw nico's head snap up at the sound of his name. he sat up from his dramatic slithering down in his chair and glared across at piper, who only winked back at him. from the opposite side of the table, nico seemed to be a little bewildered at how the game worked, glancing between piper and percy on either side of him.

conscious of everybody's eyes fixed on him, will stood up and walked around the table to nico. ears burning, he gestured to nico to stand up. piper seemed to be holding in a squeal, she practically pushed nico up as he hovered uncertainly over his chair. will sincerely hoped nobody else could hear his heart beating erratically, cause he sure could. forcing himself to bring his eyes up, he met eyes with the shorter boy and swore his heart stopped. 

those beautiful chocolate eyes, widened slightly in anticipation, shining brightly and reflecting the starry night sky behind them. will found it extremely difficult to draw his gaze away, conscious of both of their shallow breathing audible in the dead silence that struck the group. breaking the reverie, will leaned in quickly and pressed a soft kiss to nico's pale cheek. he wasn't blind to the soft red covering the other's face as he pulled away, but he said nothing of it and grinned wholeheartedly at the boy.

the group gave them a teasing round of applause, laughing until they couldn't breathe over the sheer suspense leading up to it. percy only added to nico's blush as he sat down, whispering something in his ear. will's eyes burned with curiosity, catching the flush that graced nico's face and the smile on percy's. 

he'd always liked percy, he was a cool guy. as a matter of fact, when they'd first met at camp when he was fourteen, he'd actually had a bit of a crush on him. not that he would ever admit it, besides, everyone had a crush on percy. who wouldn't? anyways, he couldn't for the life of him fathom why seeing percy and nico's interaction made his stomach crawl with hatred. he wanted to push percy away, to demand to know what he'd said that had provoked such a flustered expression on nico's face. alas, he feared he might never know. the group moved on swiftly, engaging in the next dare. 

eventually, everybody got too cold and tired to keep going, and so they bid each other goodnight. will was surprised to see thalia embrace nico in a quick hug, and his breath caught as he witnessed nico's smile for the first time. it was directed at jason, followed by a shy wave, and it warmed will from head to toe. the way his eyes crinkled, and sparkled with genuine happiness, the way it stayed on his face even after turning away from everyone else. beautiful, he thought. nico was beautiful.

piper giggled, elbowing him in the ribs. “someone's got a cruuuushh~” she sang, dancing out of the way of his slap.

groaning, will hissed at her in complaint, “oh say it any louder would you? and shut up, I don't have a crush on n-”

she interrupted him with a triumphant grin, “aha! I didn't mention any names!”

he froze, face crumpling in defeat. shaking his head, he made up a quick excuse about having to help kayla with something to escape her interrogation, and rushed back to the apollo cabin. oh boy was he screwed, piper just had to go and point it out to him. _that's_ what the feeling was, that's why he'd been mad at percy for being close to him, why those big brown eyes made everything around him freeze. no, he refused to admit it. the very idea was laughable, they were polar opposites. and besides, they'd only known each other two days! piper's departing words echoed tantalisingly in his head, _it's love at first sight!_

whatever, he'd get over it eventually, he knew he would. there was just no point denying when another guy was attractive, it was facts. but here he was, friends with percy whom he'd been head-over-heels for a few years ago. it was just that, a crush. a silly little school girl crush that would pass with time, he would have plenty of time to get to know nico and come to admire him as he did percy. right, yeah. this was fine, totally fine.

it was everything but fine.

he dreamt of running his hands through long, fluffy, raven hair, of staring into those warm eyes every morning. of holding the boy close and resting his chin on his head, of pressing gentle kisses all over his face and telling him how perfect he is. of finally reaching closer, breathing in his honey scent, tangling fingers through those untamed locks, and of pressing their soft lips together in unison.

yep. he was royally screwed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whoo, two chapters in one day! i hope anybody reading these likes them, im honestly surprised anyone found this fic - i thought solangelo love had died down!
> 
> on a side note, if yall couldn't tell already i love thalia with every inch of my being 🤧
> 
> any suggestions/criticism are welcome! thank you for reading <3
> 
> \- kaden


	4. chapter four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> nico's pov!
> 
> this is kind of a filler chapter i suppose, so sorry abt that! next chapter will be the beach one so look forward to that >:)

nico jolted awake, hands grabbing desperately for something that wasn't there. he cupped his hands over his face, shaking palms rebounding warm breaths against his mouth and nose. hunched over in his bunk bed, he squeezed his dark eyes shut with enough force to see stars.

stars, twinkling in the sky. a soft voice whispering to him, lifting his hand up to point out all the beautiful patterns painted across the darkness.

releasing a shaky sigh, he let himself fall onto his back. one arm falling limp to his side, the other covering his eyes. tears trailing down his porcelain cheeks, he allowed himself to sink into the memory.

“ _look nico! do you see it? see that one, right there?”_

_a girl with big brown eyes shining in excitement fills his vision, dark hair swinging loosely around her face in the chilling wind._

_a different voice replies from within him, tone full of desperation. “no! where?”_

_she laughs, voice like a sweet lullaby that could sooth anyone to calm in an instant. his hands are raised in front of him, smaller than the warmth engulfing them. he allows his fingers to be adjusted into a point, and watches with wonder as she traces out the constellation with them._

_“you see it now?” she whispers, voice filled with nothing but pure joy._

_the breeze returns, scattering strands of dark hair across his face. he breathes softly, “yeah.. what's that one?”_

_eyes fixed on the lights in the sky, he hears her reply from his side, “that one's called orion, he was a greek hunter.”_

_“coolll..” he whispers, smiling as she laughs._

_the view in front of him shifts, and he feels himself falling backwards onto the soft cushion of grass. “hey!” the little voice from within him protests, shoving off the hands to blame._

_she appears in front of him, hovering over him with a smile brighter than the moon outlining her silhouette. “silly, you can see the stars better like this. you'll thank me later.”_

_he giggles as she tickles him until they both can't breathe from laughing, rolling over in the grass. voice protesting, he exclaims with_ _a_ _grin,_

“ _bianca!”_

a knock on his door jerks him back to reality, shooting up from his bed and hitting his head on the wood above him. “ouch!”

the knocking halts, the owner apparently having heard his exclamation.

reluctantly dragging himself out from the warmth of his covers, his runs a hand frantically through his hair in an attempt to look presentable. stepping to the mirror, he stares in disdain at the unorganised boy in front of him.

dark hair sticking up in all directions, eyes heavy with tiredness and skin ghostly pale. squinting through the darkness, he wipes hurriedly at his eyes to rid them of the tears that had dried there.

adjusting the hoodie he'd slept in, he opened the door slightly and peeked outside. “hello?” he cringed at the croak in his voice, lips chapped and dry.

grey eyes meet his, moving to face the only part of the door that's open. they widen a little in surprise, then narrow in curiosity. 

“um, hey nico! thought i should wake you up, everyone's wondering where you are. i'll give you a minute..?” she asks hesitantly, a voice nico now recognised to be annabeth.

waking up a little more now, he lifts a hand to rub his eye, mumbling with confusion evident in his tone. “oh, sorry. um, where am i supposed to be?”

blinking sleep blearily out of his eyes, the blurred shape in front of him focuses, an intimidating figure made up of blonde curls and arms folded tensely. 

“at the dining pavilion?? for breakfast??” she replies, staring at him scrutinising. after a beat she adds, “you okay?”

“breakfast.. right..” he repeats almost in audibly, voice slurred with sleep. they wanted to eat with _him?_ maybe he'd misunderstood. shifting uncomfortably on the spot, he avoids her gaze. “that's okay, i'm not very hungry anyway.”

annabeth sighs, very clearly not convinced. mom mode™ switched on, she shakes her head in exasperation. “i'll give you ten minutes.”

nico glances to her with confusion, stubbornly refusing to move from his place at the door. “what? i just said i wasn't going.”

“too bad, i say you are. nine minutes.” she replies firmly, tapping her foot to implement her point.

absolutely bewildered, he falters slightly under her gaze and offers a shrug. “okay..”

slipping back into the darkness of his cabin, he pulls the door shut and sighs softly so she won't hear him. eyes feebly searching for previously discarded clothes, he hurried to grab clean garments. after staring in the mirror with comb in hand, he decided his hair was a lost cause and headed to the door. 

surprised to find annabeth still waiting for him, he folds his arms inside the large pocket of his hoodie. “you're--”

she cuts him off, smiling in a friendly manner, “twelve minutes, could use some improvement but i'll take it. let's go!”

nico watches her hop briskly down the steps from his cabin, turning to look at him from the bottom. “nico? earth to nico?” she calls in a dry tone.

“oh, um, yeah sorry. coming.” he mumbles halfheartedly, stumbling lazily down the steps.

keeping his eyes fixed on the ground, he followed annabeth through the rows of cabins, painfully aware of other's gazes on him. a sudden shove to his side catches him off guard, he jumps and wobbles sideways.

“don't mind them, neeks! they're just wondering who's cool enough to walk with _the_ percy jackson.” a vaguely familiar voice chirps, laughing at annabeth's over dramatic groan in reply.

nico chances a look sideways, met with the curious gaze of large sea green eyes. kind of like a baby seal, he thinks absentmindedly. 

seeming to notice nico's quiet mood, percy rubs the back of his neck. “ah, sorry. i made you jump. rough night?”

something about his tone intrigues nico, he spoke of a 'rough night' like it was an experience he could empathise with. offering a shrug, he returns his gaze to the floor.

“you could say that.” he replies quietly, biting his lip hard.

from the corner of his eye he sees the two exchange a concerned look.

“okay, well i'm sure we'll all feel better with some food in us! i heard there's pancakes today.” annabeth speaks up, effectively shifting the conversation from less happy topics.

they break into easy, playful conversation and nico takes the chance to slip off to the side. he figures they'll leave him alone if he looks like he's getting food, so he approaches the self serve breakfast table and hovers near it. 

“well if it isn't the sleeping beauty himself! why you lurking around here like someone sketchy?” a very familiar voice teases from his left. his stomach erupts into butterflies, mind jumping back to the game of truth or dare yesterday.

“i'm not lurking.” he replies in protest, keeping his gaze stubbornly fixed on the food table in front of him.

will, he thinks happily. which quickly switches to surprise, and then confusion. why? why was he happy? his voice? what did he have that nobody else did? the soft scent of flowers and pancakes reaches him, overwhelming his tired state. gaze drawn to the warm body beside him, his dark eyes flick up curiously. 

a smile as bright as the sun greets him, flowers tucked in various places amidst his long blonde curls. crystal blue eyes sparkling, he holds out a plate of pancakes covered in golden syrup. “sure you're not. why aren't you taking any food then?”

nico blinks, unable to pull his focus away from the angel in front of him. the normal, conversational words that left will's mouth reminded him he was overthinking things. he'd forgotten what they'd even been talking about at this point, so he shrugged. 

will frowns a little at this, freckled nose scrunching up cutely. “oh, come on now. don't tell me you're gonna give me that, 'i'm not hungry' crap.”

nico flinched away from the sudden firmness in his tone. great, he'd already ruined someone's good mood. dark, disappointed thoughts clouded his vision, forcing his expression into a cold and defensive stoic-ness.

“well maybe i'm just not, okay? drop it.” he snaps back with bitterness, turning away from the other.

his heart sinks further with every second of silence that passes, he's really fucked up now. though to his surprise, eventually will speaks up with a gentle kindness that makes nico's knees feel weak.

“okay, please come sit with us? even if you don't want anything to eat?”

he finds himself nodding before he could even process what was happening, the soft questioning tone effectively freezing his mental process. he doesn't protest as a large warm hand encloses his, tugging him gently over to a table. only once he's dropped down into a chair does he come back down to earth. 

did he.. did he just.. hold his hand? no, no way. this was not happening. he looked up as the only voice that could catch his attention addressed the group. 

“found our prince of darkness, don't think he's quite awake yet though.” a soft tinkling laugh follows the statement, quickly picked up by the other's.

of course they're laughing, how could they not? that laugh, that voice, the happiness was contagious. his limbs felt frozen in place, scared. this was it, he was going to mess it all up. he shouldn't be here--why was he here? he abruptly made to get up, flinching as a hand comes to rest on top of his. 

“it's okay, nico.” a barely audible whisper reaches his ears, the calming voice seeping into him and filling him from head to toe with warm honey. “you don't have to talk, we all want you here, you know.”

nico falls back into his seat in defeat, disappointment filling him as he feels the comforting warmth leave his hand. he wants to complain, to whine at him to not let go. to hold his hand and let him know it's okay. but he can't, that's stupid. will is his-- are they even friends? it's not right, to take advantage of his friendly kindness like this.

guilt. if only will knew how he really felt.

“hey, nico! say ahhh..” an unfamiliar voice says from his other side, he looks quickly to see who it is.

oh, hazel. right? he couldn't remember, he'd met a lot of people yesterday. probably more than he'd ever met in his entire life, people tended to avoid him. 

“what?” he stuttered, eyes widening as a forkful of pancake was pushed into his open mouth. struggling to swallow the sticky mush, he frowns at the curly haired girl giggling in front of him.

“there, now you've at least eaten something!” she exclaimed happily, poking a cup of water over to him. “sorry it's so syrupy, percy went a bit mental on these ones.”

nico found himself once again taken aback by the genuine kindness in her tone, he realised with an ache who she reminded him of. bianca. 

taking the water, he exhaled softly in relief at the cool liquid gracing his parched mouth. “thanks.. hazel, right?” he asked softly, hoping his sadness didn't show in his gaze.

how could he explain to this innocent girl that she reminded him of his dead sister?

“yeah, you remembered!” she replied with a smile, head of curls bouncing as she nodded.

nico wondered how she reminded him of bianca, he'd thought it was the eyes, but now that he looked closer they were a startling golden hazel — nothing like his sister's dark brown. maybe he was just tired.

“good job, hazel! guys, we all have to collectively try and persuade nico to eat something.” will spoke up from his left, his tone only half teasing.

smiling despite himself, nico wiped syrup off his lips and glanced shyly around the group from under his long fringe. jason met his gaze immediately, had he been watching him? 

“morning, nico! you must've been tired, it's nearly ten.” he said with a laugh, holding up the watch on his wrist.

nico's lips parted in surprise, staring at the digits on the clock. “you mean _only_ ten.” he pushed, smiling at jason's over dramatic face of disbelief.

he liked jason, the guy had been one of the most civil towards him. he hadn't made him jump once, or asked him a ton of questions. that made him seem generally approachable to nico, plus, jason had even insisted they exchange numbers last night. nico had been skeptical at first, but he'd explained it was so he could add him to the group chat.

nico hadn't bothered to check his phone for this supposed group chat since then, but he appreciated the friendly gesture. it made him feel welcomed, and like maybe, just maybe, they did want him around after all. for the moment, anyway.

piper positively fell on the end of the table, hands slapping down on the wood. everybody looked over to her in surprise, awaiting her announcement.

“guess who talked to chironn~~” she sang, grinning wildly with excitement. “we're going on a surprise beach trip next friday!! ahhh!”

nico stared at her blank faced, bewilderment flooding his features as a couple of the others gave cheers. 

“that's awesome pipes, why don't you sit down and calm a little.” annabeth said gently, pulling piper's arm to get her to stop bouncing on the spot.

“nuh-uh! i have to go make sure i have a suitable swimsuit, it's been so long since i went to the beach with my dad.” she finished with a sigh.

tuning out their conversation, nico nibbled at a piece of toast and wallowed in misery. maybe it wasn't compulsory? because there was no way in hell he would willingly go to the beach. firstly, he sunburned easily, and _badly._ the sun just hated him for reasons unfathomed. secondly, the place in general-- horrid gritty sand that got stuck all over you, murky ocean water filled with who knows what!

but most of all, he was not in any way comfortable being that exposed in front of other people. he'd absolutely die of heatstroke if he rocked up to the beach in a hoodie and jeans, from what he'd seen of florida weather anyway. to put it simply, he was not looking forward to the looming trip. so of course will had to ask with that perfectly angelic smile of his,

“hey, neeks. you looking forward to the trip? you could use the sun.”

face breaking into a frown, he avoided the question in favour of shoving will in the shoulder. “don't call me that, and no, i do not. i'll get sunburned.”

will pouted, playfully shoving nico back. “why not, neeks?”

“stop it!” he protested, shrinking away from will in an attempt to hide the blush colouring his cheeks.

stupid. stupid butterflies. go away. he thought desperately, drinking the rest of his water to distract himself. he was already warm in his big black hoodie, but he hadn't exactly thought ahead whilst throwing on clothes that morning. the heat across his face thanks to will was not helping. 

“i- um, i need a second.” he stumbled over his words, pushing his chair back with a scrape and getting up abruptly.

nico could feel will's eyes on him as he walked away, not entirely sure where he was going. he kind of regretted declining a tour when he'd first got here. the salty scent of sea water caught his attention, he changed direction to walk towards it.

eventually his eyes caught a glimpse of sparkling blue water through the bushes, and he pushed through them in an effort to see it again. curse being short. listening to the crunch of gravelly sand and chirping seagulls as he walked, he thought idly why they were going on a beach trip when there was a beach right here. his question was soon answered as he stepped out into the open, jolting backwards a little at the lapping water just metres away from him.

the beach seemed to be small as it was, just a coastline really. but at the moment the tide was partially in, so it just about reached the rocks nico found himself standing on.

closing his eyes, he took a deep breath of the sea air and smiled, letting the warm breeze flow through his ebony hair.

“nico.”

his eyes snapped open again, the voice sounded all to similar to... no, that wasn't possible. the dream had just muddled him up. glancing sideways, he caught a glimpse of blond and sighed. he refused to turn around, staring at the waves lolling gently in and out. 

“you shouldn't wander off like that, you'll get lost.” will said playfully, walking up beside him.

“I wasn't--..” he defended trailing off with a 'tsk' as he realised will was spot on.

“why are we going on a beach trip when we gave a beach here?” he countered instead, gaze flicking to will as he moved to sit down on the rock.

legs swinging idly off the edge, too close to the water for nico's liking, he hummed, “well, the trips half the fun, right? road trip! and besides, this beach sucks anyway. it's all rocky and always so...” he trailed off, searching to ocean for the right word, “stormy. like the gods are constantly angry at us.”

his response took nico by surprise, he almost seemed serious about the gods part. it reminded nico of a game he used to adore, silly little cards that he was obsessed over. it made him think of bianca, whining at him to tidy up the cards scattered across the carpet. 

“I guess. I don't like beaches anyway.” he mumbled back with a quiet sigh.

will laughed, a heavenly sound that broke the eerie silence of the place. “that fits, I can't exactly picture you on a surfboard.”

nico scoffed, smiling and turning to face will. “what? and you can? surf, I mean.”

shrugging, he replied casually, “I've done it once or twice, percy is the real expert.”

falling into comfortable silence, they sat and watched the waves together. it felt intimate, in a strange way. and nico was surprised to find himself enjoying someone else's mere presence. he should be feeling awkward right about now, singled out and anxious-- but it just felt right. to sit here in solitude with will, with that unspoken understanding between them that said _I'm here._

nico soon fell into the friendly (if chaotic) routine of the group. coming to expect leo's latest creations cooking or otherwise, learning to avoid piper's x-ray vision if you had something to hide, and coming to realise that it was okay to have friends. to have fun. and that he didn't need to shut himself off so, that he didn't need to punish himself.

though of course, there were still times he felt immense guilt for feeling so happy, and times he had to run away from the rest just to cool down. he felt disappointed, like he was letting himself and the others down at times. but some days he really just couldn't bring himself to sleep, or to get out of bed. at the very least he was eating the minimum amount to stay healthy, will made sure of that.

he'd even earned a couple nicknames, from kids around camp and from his insufferable friends. he didn't mind as much anymore, that people pointed and stared, and that some campers shied away from him in fear. will liked to call him death boy, or ghost king, which nico pretended to absolutely hate. but the one that really made his insides flutter was that god forsaken over-cheerful "neeks" that left those beautiful lips.

before he knew it a week had passed, and he realised with a groan as he rolled over in bed that today was the day. the day of that god awful trip to the beach, that he'd been trying to get out of for a week. chiron just wouldn't take no for an answer, he sided with will (stupid fucking traitor) and said that he could use the sun. 

his eyes settled blearily on the clothes laid out for him, swimming trunks from piper on the top of the pile. he didn't even want to get up, and a week ago he simply wouldn't have. but now, it was different, way different.

first to come knocking would be annabeth, in that motherly way of hers she would try everything to get him out. but he knew her little tricks now, and seldom ever got up for her. percy would try too, usually with her if he wasn't down at the docks doing percy things. second, hazel and jason would come with offerings of breakfast things they knew nico liked, occasionally accompanied by reyna who near enough tried to bust his door down one time.

and finally, once it had gotten well past twelve, will would barge in uninvited if the door was unlocked. if it wasn't, he would get austin (his cabin mate/'brother') to pick the lock for him. and nico _hated_ when will did that. he was never prepared for that ball of golden sunshine first thing upon waking up, on fact, he was never prepared for it full stop.

so with the threatening thought of his friends hammering on his door and being generally annoying, he reluctantly got up and persuaded himself to take a shower. you know how it is, you don't want to get in and then you don't want to get out. he must've stayed under the scorching water jets for longer than he'd thought, because he heard the familiar rapping of annabeth's knock on his door. 

“I'm showering!” he called, listening hard over the water for her retreat.

flicking the power off, he pushed his wet fringe out of his face so he could see and toweled himself off quickly. he did not want to meet jason and hazel at the door in a towel. 

pulling on long shorts and a tee shirt on over his swimming trunks, he felt a sinking desperation with every second. this was bad even on a good day, he wouldn't be caught dead showing this much skin. and that was without thinking about seeing everyone else showing skin. he was positively _dreading_ it. at the very least will would be there, they could bicker and play fight as usual and he could sit in the shade the whole trip.

will would be there. in swimming trunks, bare chested. completely in his element, grinning like an idiot. dear god he was not ready for this. he caught a glimpse of his reflection in the mirror as he passed it, grimacing at the red hue to his face. _okay, stop thinking about will. it's fine._

it was not, in any way shape or form, fine. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always thank you for reading! kudos and comments are appreciated <3
> 
> \- kaden


	5. chapter five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> beach chapter beach chapter beach chapter  
> (part one!)

“i see it!”

will turned his head curiously, trying and failing to follow leo's gaze as the curly haired boy flailed about. 

“no you can't. we're like, a whole ten more minutes away.” percy protested in response, shaking his head and once again pulling his friend away from the wide open window.

even with all the windows in the minibus open, the heat was still sweltering. the good mood had sort of dimmed since their departure, each one of them growing more and more irritated in the heat. nico especially, will noticed. the guy probably would've preferred to be anywhere but here.

annabeth was driving, a very smart decision on everyone's part, although it hadn't come about without an argument with piper over who drove the most responsibly. she glanced to the back, throwing leo a stern look which made percy shrink back into his seat. 

“both of you! for gods sake- leo, get back from that window. and percy, you're gonna end up pushing _yourself_ out if you keep doing that!” she reprimanded, rolling her eyes and turning her attention back to the road.

will couldn't help but laugh at her motherly tone, he even caught nico smiling as percy and leo mumbled a surprisingly sincere apology.

“they're always like this aren't they? i thought maybe when i first met them they were drunk.” nico said with a sigh, his question aimed at will sitting opposite him.

their little group had got a minivan to themselves, enough seats in the back with one forward facing row and one backward facing row that they could all sit fairly comfortably. will looked over to smile at the other, happy to see him going out of his way to talk more now.

“yeah, pretty much.” he replied with a laugh, shaking his head and only laughing more as thalia gave him an offended glare.

“i'm not _that_ bad! right nico?” she complained, digging the italian in the side with her elbow. the girl had absolutely insisted nico sit beside her, determined to be his friend.

“uhhh..” nico trailed off uncertainly, looking out the window to avoid her pout.

“oh c'mon! i really though you'd-”

“oh, i actually see it now guys.” nico cut her off, catching the attention of the group as he pointed to the sparkling blue water in the distance.

percy nearly knocked leo out of the window trying to see, face lighting up in excitement. “really? where? annabeth are we nearly there yet? can i run the rest of the way? please?”

will tuned out their bickering as soon as it started, focusing instead on nico with a gentle concern. the boy hadn't been particularly loud about not wanting to come, but will remembered clearly when he'd told him he didn't liked the beach.

“ _I guess. I don't like beaches anyway.” he mumbled back with a quiet sigh._

_“that fits, I can't exactly picture you on a surfboard.”_

_nico scoffed, smiling and turning around. “what? and you can? surf, I mean.”_

_“I've done it once or twice, percy is the real expert.”_

_they fell into comfortable silence, sitting and watching the waves together. it felt intimate, in a strange way. it felt nice, to sit here in solitude with each other_ _, with that unspoken understanding between them that said_ I'm here.

“will? what is it?”

a soft voice brought his attention back to the present, smiling at the "wheel" that once again graced his ears. he realised he must've been staring, and opened and closed his mouth a few times before remembering what he'd been thinking.

“oh, um, actually i was gonna ask you that.” he admitted, concerned gaze meeting nico's surprised eyes. “are you okay? you seem upset.”

nico shifted, visibly uncomfortable with where their conversation had gone. “yeah, i just.. don't really like the beach.” he said quietly, glancing nervously to the rest of the group. though he needn't have worried, they were paying them no mind.

seeming to think over what he said, nico quickly added with a slightly panicked expression, “not that i- i mean, i do, genuinely enjoy hanging out with you all. and uh, you know, i didn't mean... i don't mind going, and i don't wanna ruin your fun.”

“that's okay,” will replied simply, smiling until nico gave him a small one in return. “you're not ruining anyone's fun, neeks. we're all glad to have you here, whether you like the beach or not.”

will studied the other's face carefully for any hidden reaction. he'd noticed lately that nico often put on a front, or didn't say what he meant. to his surprise, there was none this time. though there was a distinct pool of water welling in those big eyes.

“y-yeah, i guess. thanks.” nico said quietly, gaze dropping to the floor as he hurriedly rubbed his eyes on his face.

before will could attack him with concerned questions, thalia jumped back into their conversation and broke the serene bubble they'd unknowingly placed over it. she'd clearly looked over to excitedly tell them about whatever the others were saying, but she hesitated with a look at nico.

“guys-- oh, sorry neeks. did i wake you up?” she said meekly, certainly sounding sorry as she stared at him rubbing his eyes furiously.

“ ʼs fine.” he mumbled back, pulling his hands away to give her a small smile.

thalia seemed even less convinced, she glanced to will and then back to the boy beside her. 

“holy hell, will. have you seen this? he's got fucking golf ball sized rings under his eyes!” she exclaimed in outrage, as if will should've done something about that. she addressed a bewildered nico now as she asked firmly, “when was the last time you slept? how long? answer me honestly death boy.”

nico slid down in his seat, his small shrug going unnoticed by thalia. will noticed, he noticed everything about the guy. right now, he could clearly see that nico didn't want to talk. he gave thalia an angry look. how could she not see that?

“nico--” she started in concern, but piper's loud cheer joined by percy's announcement, paired with various complaints, drowned her out. 

“we're here! everybody out of this god forsaken van right now- leo move! ow, frank, you're hitting me-”

will noticed nico sigh in relief, and he bit at his lip. he'd have to talk to nico about sleep schedules at some point. for now, he stood up as much as he could and pushed open the side door, practically falling out into the fresh air. not much fresher, but a little less unbearably hot. 

“you coming?” he asked cheerfully, holding up a hand to block out the sun and reaching for nico with his other one.

with some hesitation, a skeletal hand took gentle hold of his, and nico stepped warily out of the van. “it's so hot.” he mumbled with a sigh, looking in longing at the rushing waves of cold water.

“well you can go sink into the cold embrace of the water then, i'm sure percy will make everyone go in at some point anyway.” will suggested, pointing to the tide rolling in and out a few yards away from them.

nico fell strangely silent at this comment, though will didn't have time to question it as piper paraded them all down the sandy dunes to find "the bestest spot" for all their blankets and umbrellas.

will, along with everybody else, had long since discarded of their jackets and shoes. clad in his bright blue swim trunks, he thanked annabeth and took the offered sunscreen, applying heaps of it to his tanned arms. he didn't burn easily, but that didn't mean he was safe. he planned to stay out in the sun for a long time. he felt someone's gaze on him and turned to give the culprit a smile. 

nico looked away just as quickly, though will could see by his pushed together brows that something was bothering him. 

“hey, what's wrong?” he asked casually, dropping down onto the towel next to nico.

the guy really hadn't been kidding when he said he hated the beach. he'd kept his jacket and tee shirt on, stayed stubbornly on the rocks until there was a towel for him to seek refuge on, and he refused to come out from under the shade of the umbrella hazel had set up for him.

“nothing.” he replied quickly. too quickly.

will eyed him worriedly for a moment before resuming his sunscreen-ing, glad for the momentary shade cast by the umbrella above them so that he could actually see what he was doing. “want some? i put too much on.”

after a few moments of silence following this, will turned his head in question. he was surprised to be met with a horrified expression plastered across nico's face. so surprised in fact, once he got over the confusion, that he collapsed into laughter. barely spluttering out a, “your face!”

“w-what? you asked me a weird question.” nico stuttered back defensively, pushing his fist half-heartedly into will's shoulder. though he withdrew his hand like he'd been burnt, cheeks warming.

will subdued his laughter for this, grinning wildly at him and asking curiously, “what is it? did my strong shoulder muscles break your puny hand attempting an attack?”

this time nico smiled, and will almost sworn he looked relieved at the usual joke. “you don't have any muscles and you know it, _william.”_

“hey, hey! no,” will protested, pushing a finger into nico's chest, thickly covered by soft hoodie material. “don't call me that! my name is will.”

nico merely laughed under his breath and pushed will's hand off him, though his breath caught as will added casually, 

“i like hearing you say my name. it sounds nice when you say it.”

the distant cries of percy splashing a shrieking annabeth in the water broke the silence that settled over them, will's heart beat wildly in his chest. had he said that out loud? well, he knew he had but-- it sounded so much worse out loud. quickly, he justified weakly, “you know, you say it all cute like, wheel.”

nope nope nope. that's worse. way worse. how could it _get_ any worse!? for gods sake william now you've called him cute twice.

to his relief, nico seemed to have opted for moving on and ignoring it. he had tugged off his black hoodie and left his hair all fluffed up. will smiled, automatically reaching over to brush it down. as always, nico tried to swat his hand away. this had become a regular occurrence, will noticed. nico seemed opposed to any sort of physical touch, be it affection or accidental.

“stop that-- it'll be messy anyway.” nico complained, finally succeeding in ducking out of will's grasp.

he didn't seem to mind, will noted. sure, he complained and tried to hit him, but it was gentle. like a sort of play fighting you know means no harm. actually, this time will noticed the small smile across nico's face as he spoke. he smiled back even bigger.

“why do you smile if you don't like it?” he teased, reaching out with a questioning hand with his glob of unused sunscreen.

again, nico looked horrified, eyeing will's hand and then scrutinising his face like he was thinking; _what the fuck is up there because it sure as hell isn't a brain._

“what!? i'm just tryna help!” will exclaimed, shaking his head in absolute bewilderment as nico groaned.

he noticed nico still hadn't taken off his tee shirt, and his face softened in understanding. “oh.. you're shy. it's okay, you can probably swim in that if you don't mind getting it wet.”

nico glared at him with ferocity will hadn't even known he possessed, he quickly started to backtrack but stopped as nico spoke first.

“shut up, i'm not shy. i don't want to swim anyway.” he snapped turning his head away and pretending to have an interest in the sandcastle frank and hazel were building a few feet away.

“okay,” will replied simply, though he tapped nico's arm anyway and raised his eyebrows to ask silently again.

“what?” nico grumbled, eyes dropping until he saw the sunscreen. his nose went bright red, along with most of his face, but he gave a small nod and ducked his head away from will's answering grin.

the blond took nico's arm and shuffled closer, gently spreading the cold cream across his skin. though he had quite a bit of trouble figuring out which bits he'd already covered, the sunscreen was the same colour as nico's ghostly complexion. “you _really_ need some sun.” he hummed gently, he felt nico's eyes on him but no response came.

this time it was will's turn to blush, as he reached up and ran his fingers through the ends of nico's long mullet-like hair to lather up his neck too. the soft strands of cobalt slipped easily through his fingers, and even after he'd finished with the sunscreen he found himself subconsciously running his hands through it. a small whimper brought him back to his senses, and he backed up quickly with a muttered "sorry".

nico was looking at him weird now, and he didn't stop even as will told him he was going to the water. he seemed to get a hold of himself as will stood up, and suddenly scrambled to his feet and spluttered,

“wait-- will, i want to come. but, i-i.. i can't swim.”

the tall blond turned around immediately, wind catching in his curls as he stared at nico. eyes reflecting the calming shine of the ocean that widened in surprise. at nico's suddenly frightened face, he swiftly brought up a smile and shook his head. “stupid, why didn't you tell any of us? hey, how about i help you then? c'mon death boy, pleaseee?”

nico seemed alarmed at his response, and vigorously shook his head, raven fringe floating across his face in the breeze. “i can't, you should go have fun.”

will scoffed, and grabbed nico's hand impatiently. as he dragged them both down the sand, he grumbled just loud enough for nico to hear,

“it wouldn't be fun without you.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always, thank you sm for reading! and im really sorry this took me so long to get done, ive had zero motivation for writing recently 😭
> 
> i decided to split this beach trip thing into two chapters cause im nearly at 3,000 words already and i still have stuff i wanna include lmfao
> 
> comments and kudos are greatly appreciated! 
> 
> \- kaden


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